And they call it puppet love

Dave Rozmarynowski's long-running show now includes daughter, 14

SOUTH BEND -- The wolf’s voice is Dave Rozmarynowski’s favorite, but after three back-to-back shows, the gruffness leaves him with a scratchy voice.

“As I’m driving home, I’m like, ‘I got nothing’ … no voice left. It’s such a strain on my voice to make it gruff and push it out.”

Unusual voices are Rozmarynowski’s specialty. Since 1997, he has used this talent with his one-man, many-puppet show, Roz Puppets.

“All of the characters have a distinct voice. When I’m looking at them, there’s that voice, and it just pops right out,” the South Bend puppeteer said.

He initially performed at birthday parties, without any advertising. “It was all word of mouth,” he said.

Now, Roz Puppets performs up to three shows in one day. “I don’t even have to get paid for this. I love to hear the kids squeal. I love to hear the adults laugh and to know that I’ve done that,” said Rozmarynowski.

Jim Henson’s “The Muppet Show” provided inspiration for him growing up. His background in puppetry dates back 30 years. Rozmarynowski tried ventriloquism before puppetry, but wasn’t a fan of the wooden dummy.

“By doing puppetry, I can do all acts of theater. I can be the creator of the characters,” Rozmarynowski said. “I can be the actor. I can be the director. I can be the scene changing person. I can be the choreographer.”

Puppetry also allows him to spend more time with his daughter, Libby, 14, who has assisted him for almost four years.

Libby decided to accompany her father to one of his Christmas shows, and she’s been hooked ever since.

“I’m going to miss her when she eventually wants to move on and do something else but I’m enjoying it all while she’s with me,” Rozmarynowski said.

Libby isn’t as advanced as her father when it comes to the puppets’ voices, but she has begun learning and sometimes performs at the shows.

“There’s really no bad guys or villains with puppets,” Rozmarynowski said. “Well, there are villains, but they still aren’t villainy. They’re still fuzzy and cute.” He creates and builds the characters himself.

Libby wouldn’t mind taking over the business for a while when he retires, but that won’t be anytime soon.